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Improvised Bach: A Case Study(Video)

Bach is already perfect, but having fun with it is hard to resist. As more classical musicians practice the way jazz musicians do, I predict we'll hear all kinds of new creative music.

Bach is perfect. Still, having fun with it is hard to resist (see the video below). The Fugue for unaccompanied violin could be treated with a walking bass line. Instead, I used a half-time feel bass line to allow space for fugue-like countermelodies in the inner voices. This way, rather than assigning the bass, comping, and melody their typical places in a swing-type rendition, the difference between foreground and background becomes blurred.

 

I hope classical musicians can use this to inspire them to improvise with classical material in other ways.

The best way for musicians to improve is by recording and listening back. That’s one reason the loop pedal is more than a gimmick. A great practice tool, looping, allows me to immediately review my timing, rhythm, ensemble, ideas, phrasing, intonation, and more. See how to use a loop pedal for teaching, performance, and practice.

 

Photo: Stephan Danelian As Yo-Yo Ma once told me in a master class (paraphrasing), “Learning to play in tune is a lifetime project for every string player.”

 

But the loop pedal reveals things harder to pin down than intonation, something most classical musicians rarely spend time honing, and in this performance, it’s so blatant I almost didn’t post the video. Hint: anytime you’re working with a longer form, this will be harder to perfect, and it becomes apparent at one moment each time the form loops around. Let me know if you figured out what I’m referring to and if it bothers you.

 

Browse my premium trainings.

 

Credit for truncating the form of the Bach Fugue in G Minor goes to Billy Contreras. We recorded a duo version of this arrangement on “Jazz Fiddle Revolution”.

 

My gear is supplied by the Electric Violin Shop.

Yamaha Silent Violin 250
D’Addario Helicore Strings
Boss ME-70 (multi-effects signal processor)
Ditto loop pedal

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